Tyler Farrar has his eyes on other one-day Classics after he won the biggest race of his career Sunday in Germany, Hamburg's Vattenfall Cyclassics. He hopes to have a strong 2010 season, one which could end with him becoming the first World Champion from the USA since Lance Armstrong.
"I have to keep in mind my strengths," team Garmin's Farrar told Cyclingnews. "Races like Milano-Sanremo, Gent-Wevelgem, Paris-Tours, Vattenfall are the one-day Classics for me."
Farrar put his name in the Hamburg annals alongside Alessandro Ballan, Oscar Freire, Paolo Bettini and Johan Museeuw, all riders who have won the World Championships at least once. The next two seasons present World Championships suited to sprinters like Farrar, Melbourne in 2010 and Copenhagen in 2011. He could become the first World Champion from the USA since Armstrong won his title in at the 1993 edition in Oslo, Norway.
"I would think [it's possible] some day in the future, but not this year," he said. "With the progress I've made this year I have to be considered a contender for the one-day races that can end in a sprint."
Hamburg topped off a season of sprinting persistence for Farrar. He began with a stage win in Tirreno-Adriatico, three second places in the Giro d'Italia, a stage and overall at the Delta Tour Zeeland and twice second in the Tour de France.
Farrar rode easy for 10 days after the Tour de France and took part in some post-Tour criteriums. He intensified his training heading into his third participation in Hamburg.
"I know I was in decent form from the Tour and the Hamburg course suits me pretty well. The team had it in mind for me. Once we got over the [Waseberg] climb the last time, we knew it would be a sprint. I had Martijn [Maaskant] and Chris Sutton working for me. They both did a great job putting me where I needed to be for the sprint."
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Farrar is continuing strong in the Eneco Tour, August 18 to 25. He finished second by one-second in the 4.4-kilometre prologue time trial yesterday. He said he wants to win a stage in the race that today would also give him the chance to take the leader's jersey from Frenchman Sylvain Chavanel.
Farrar will race his third Grand Tour of the year, the Vuelta a España, after the Eneco Tour. He will then represent USA for the fourth time and at the World Championships in Mendrisio, Switzerland, September 27.
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